The present invention relates to heating systems, and more particularly to such systems for heating wet dressings.
Wet dressings are commonly used for therapeutic purposes, such as on abscesses and boils. The wet dressings are applied in a heated state and serve to prevent tissue encrustation, and promote blood flow and fluid drainage, with the effect of reducing swelling and its consequent pain. Such dressings are commonly packaged in specially designed foil packs which are capable of conducting and withstanding increased temperatures and internal pressures during heating. After appropriate heating, the dressings are removed from the packs, and are applied to the patient.
In the past, the dressings are commonly heated through use of radiant heating procedures. Thus, the packed dressings may be stacked below a bulb which emits infrared rays in order to heat the dressings in the foil packs. The upper pack of the stacked packs remains below the heating bulb for a set period of time, such as five minutes, after which the upper pack may be removed and the underlying packs must be sequentially heated for additional periods of time, such as three minutes each. Thus, such prior devices require an extended period of time in order to heat a series of wet dressings, and limit immediate access to a plurality of heated dressings. Moreover, the heating device does not permit storage of dressings in a heated condition, and the dressings must be applied immediately after heating in order to prevent their cooling prior to use. Further, one or more of the wet dressings may be overheated due to lack of precise control over the radiant heating procedure, resulting in possible discomfort and harm to the patient when applied to the patient's tissue. In addition, the number of dressings which may be simultaneously heated is limited by the capabilities of the heating device.
A wet dressings heating system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,163,896, incorporated herein by reference.